{"id":49547,"date":"2025-08-06T13:13:08","date_gmt":"2025-08-06T13:13:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/49547\/"},"modified":"2025-08-06T13:13:08","modified_gmt":"2025-08-06T13:13:08","slug":"the-existential-question-of-the-savannah-bananas-plus-the-latest-browns-qb-update","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/49547\/","title":{"rendered":"The existential question of the Savannah Bananas, plus the latest Browns QB update"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Pulse Newsletter \ud83d\udce3 | This is The Athletic\u2019s daily sports newsletter. Sign up here<\/a> to receive The Pulse directly in your inbox.<\/p>\n

Good morning! I\u2019m confident you\u2019ll play Week 1.<\/p>\n

Banana Poll: The enduring curiosity of the Savannah Bananas<\/p>\n

The Savannah Bananas are the most popular cult in sports, and I mean that as a compliment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This roving band of dancing baseball players sells out MLB stadiums across the country. They are both kings of the digital age \u2014 I\u2019m sure they\u2019ll pop up on your social media feeds after you read this \u2014 and of the in-person experience, where tickets are ludicrously hard to come by.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Something that may have been labeled a fad a few years ago \u2014 the team was founded in 2016 \u2014 is now fully mainstream. The Athletic\u2019s Britt Ghiroli witnessed it firsthand this week and wrote a great story<\/a> posing the question: What can MLB learn from the Bananas\u2019 success?\u00a0<\/p>\n

It sparked a more macro debate, and I want your opinion on that in a bit. But two points I\u2019d like to make about the Bananas first:\u00a0<\/p>\n

After reading Britt\u2019s story, I formed a more existential admiration for the Bananas operation. Founder Jesse Cole said he\u2019s been approached by gobs of deep-pocketed investors who want in. Cole said no, because in his words, he wants \u201ca billion fans,\u201d not a billion dollars. Tickets are $35. Building an accessible and sustainable sports product that can be enjoyed by everyone? Hell yeah, brother.
The Bananas ride a line between drama and clownery I find fascinating. Online, you\u2019ll see them pausing the game to perform a viral TikTok dance or something similar. But due to some creative scoring rules, there is legitimate drama to these \u201cgames.\u201d My first mental comparison was the Harlem Globetrotters, which is apparently a slightly sore subject.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I want to know how you feel about the entire trend, because the Bananas aren\u2019t slowing any time soon. And there is legitimate merit to the idea that MLB can learn from what has become an outrageously successful operation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Thus, our next Pulse Poll, and think of it as a vibe check: How do you feel about the Bananas? And do you think MLB should actually consider their ideas in the future? Choices:\u00a0<\/p>\n

Wait, what\u2019s a Savannah Banana?\u00a0
\nThe Bananas are fantastic. Take what you can, MLB.\u00a0
\nThis is juvenile nonsense, and please keep it away from my sport.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Make your voice heard below. And don\u2019t forget to read Britt\u2019s story<\/a> for her thoughts.<\/p>\n

Business: More changes on your TV screen<\/p>\n

Boring as it may sound, the way we watch sports is undergoing a period a rapid change. Two stories from yesterday perfectly exemplified it:\u00a0<\/p>\n

To start small, Fox is launching a direct-to-consumer service called Fox One this month that will broadcast college football, NFL games, World Series games and the network\u2019s other live offerings. It\u2019ll cost $19.99 per month, which is $10 less than ESPN\u2019s forthcoming DTC service. For those without traditional or streaming cable, it\u2019s an interesting option. See the full details here<\/a>.
The big whammy came from the NFL and ESPN, who officially announced<\/a> their new deal. ESPN will acquire NFL assets \u2014 think NFL Network, RedZone, etc. \u2014 and in return, the league gets a 10 percent ownership stake in the network. The equity further weds the two broadcast partners, and it\u2019ll be interesting to see, at least from a journalistic standpoint, how that affects ESPN\u2019s operation going forward.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s move on:<\/p>\n

News to Know\"Son<\/p>\n

Han Myung-Gu\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Son to set MLS transfer fee record
We should be talking more about the impending move of Son Heung-min, the Tottenham Hotspur legend who is close to finishing up a deal with LAFC. The MLS side will pay Spurs a $26.5 million transfer fee, the highest in league history<\/a>. Son leaves Spurs as one of the best players in the history of the franchise and, frankly, the Premier League \u2014 and he\u2019s still only 33. He\u2019s going to be massive in Los Angeles. Until then, read Jack Pitt-Brooke\u2019s excellent retrospective<\/a> on Son\u2019s career at Tottenham.<\/p>\n

Venezuelan LLWS team gets waiver
A team of youth baseball players from Venezuela have been granted a \u201cnational exemption\u201d to participate in this month\u2019s Little League World Series, despite their home country being one of the 19 on President Donald Trump\u2019s travel ban list. It comes a month after another youth baseball team from Venezuela was barred from playing in a different tournament. The backstory \u2014 including input from Venezuelan MLB players \u2014 is worth a read<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sanders to start preseason opener
Browns rookie Shedeur Sanders will be the first quarterback under center<\/a> in Cleveland\u2019s preseason game Friday, which is just another chapter in one of the stranger NFL QB competitions I can recall. Remember that this team entered camp with four legitimate options to start \u2014 including two rookies in the draft class. The competition has been a dud<\/a> so far, too.<\/p>\n

More news<\/p>\n

Topps stood by<\/a> its Lionel Messi-autographed cards, some of which PSA has refused to authenticate. Curious.
\nA former Heat and NBA employee is accused of stealing more than 400 game-used jerseys, including a $3.7 million LeBron James uniform. Wild story<\/a>.
\nCowboys owner Jerry Jones isn\u2019t confident<\/a> Micah Parsons will play Week 1, but still sounds intent on getting a deal done. Wake me up when this is over.
\n49ers tight end George Kittle is very upset<\/a> the NFL is banning smelling salts.
\nVikings wide receiver Jordan Addison will serve a three-game suspension<\/a> to begin the season for violating the league\u2019s substance abuse policy.
\nThe Yankees acquired reliever Jake Bird last week at the deadline and have already demoted<\/a> him. Things aren\u2019t going well.<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udceb\u00a0Love The Pulse? Check out our other newsletters<\/a>.<\/p>\n

What to Watch<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcfa MLB: Brewers at Braves
7:15 p.m. ET on FS1
We\u2019re going to the other side of that NL Central battle here, as Milwaukee attempts to lengthen its current win streak to six games.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcfa WNBA: Aces at Valkyries
10 p.m. ET on NBA TV
These two are close in the standings \u2014 vying for the eighth and final playoff spot currently \u2014 with 15-ish games left in the regular season. Good game.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Get tickets to games like these here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Pulse Picks<\/p>\n

Texas Tech has perennially been on the outside of true Big 12 contention. The Red Raiders are now trying to simply buy a conference title. Sam Khan Jr. took us inside one of the best stories of the NIL era<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I also loved the college football staff\u2019s annual Heisman draft<\/a>. We\u2019ve got some longshots in there. Fun prep for the season that starts in just 17(!) days.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Have you noticed Luka Don\u010di\u0107 is on a summer tour of sorts? He even went to a Backstreet Boys concert. Dan Woike went along for the ride<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If you have time for a listen\/watch, I highly recommend the interview<\/a> our friends at \u201cScoop City\u201d did with Broncos QB Bo Nix.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Speaking of Athletic podcasts: I\u2019m very excited to see \u201cThe Sports Gossip Show\u201d added to our network<\/a>, and look out for some Pulse crossover content with them later this week.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: The Freaks List<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Most-read on the website yesterday: Our latest MLB Power Rankings<\/a>. Brewers No. 1!<\/p>\n

(Top photo: Jaiden Tripi \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Pulse Newsletter \ud83d\udce3 | This is The Athletic\u2019s daily sports newsletter. Sign up here to receive The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":49548,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[435],"tags":[49,48,462,82],"class_list":["post-49547","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mlb","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-mlb","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49547"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49547\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49548"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}